Many nurses are reluctant to assume a Charge Nurse role, since they are often asked to do this without any education or training. Yet charge nurses play a critical role in helping their Nurse Manager or leader achieve desired financial and clinical outcomes. Examples include: staffing, scheduling, assignments, patient placement and throughput.

One key competency that Charge Nurses struggle with is learning how to delegate. Many find it is difficult to delegate tasks to peers, since they rely on peers for assistance with patient care later when not in the Charge Nurse role. Staffing in some organizations require the Charge Nurses to take a patient assignment, while in other hospitals they do not. But delegation is still a key competency Charge Nurses need to exhibit to assure that units run efficiently.

Delegation Framework

Following a delegation framework will help assure that the right task(s) will be assigned to the right staff member, under the best circumstance, and begin to answer issues of communication, supervision, and evaluation needed. Delegation remains an underdeveloped skill among nurses, and one that is difficult to measure - but it can be planned for! The following outlines components of the Rights of Delegation Model:

Assessment and Plan: As a Charge Nurse, am I giving the right tasks to the right nurse/staff member?

What are needs of the patients?

What is the predictability of the patient's response to care?

What cognitive abilities are needed to perform tasks? Which team member has the best competencies to perform?

Communication: Is the Charge Nurse providing communication that puts the unit on the right path?

How will tasks get accomplished?

What needs to be reported?

What are communication expectations in emergency situations?

Supervision and Surveillance: Find the right amount of supervision for the unit

What level of supervision should the Charge Nurse provide to be optimal?

Appropriate delegation assumes that prior to assignment of tasks, the Charge Nurse uses judgment and demonstrates critical thinking to assess the skill, competence, attitude, and experience of staff, as well as patient requirements and circumstances. Delegation paves the way for trust, effective communication, and mutual support which contribute to success of effective nursing teams. So help your Charge Nurses plan for delegation. Planning for delegation is planning for success!

Saint Anthony Hospital staff worked hard to improve its Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade from a D in 2014 to an A in October 2016. The nonprofit, community teaching hospital in Chicago found one key to success came in providing front-line nurse leadership with increased confidence and management tools that would help improve hospital standards and quality of care.

Finding the Right Curriculum

Saint Anthony’s development team was searching for a structured, in-depth learning program that would empower their nurses to take leadership to the next level. What they found was Catalyst Learning Company’s NCharge® Nurses Learning to Lead program. NCharge provided the detailed content and knowledge assessments they were looking for, with results that are measurable. By focusing on relevant leadership scenarios within the hospital, participants were able to easily relate and apply techniques to their everyday environment.

“Like most healthcare organizations, we are growing and changing. We were also in the process of reorganization. It was about sweeping clean on old ideas and looking for ways to be more efficient. Illinois is also tightening on funds and as a nonprofit hospital, we had to look at ways to be more efficient in how we were working and make our staff feel as if they have a way to advancement,” stated Jaqueline Napier, Manager of Talent and Development at Saint Anthony.

Leading with More Confidence

One important outcome noted by Saint Anthony management is the overall improved confidence among nursing leadership. Creating a more autonomous team has positively impacted the hospital environment and proven an effective influence regarding quality of care.

Sonia Haro, an ICU Staff Nurse and NCharge participant, committed her time to the NCharge series with specific objectives in mind. “I was looking for ways to communicate more effectively, especially when setting expectations for the team. Sometimes, not everyone feels like being a team player. I wanted to find a way to encourage my team but stay firm and reach expectations,” explained Haro. This was the type of leadership training that most staff nurses don't get with shadowing or clinical training. Haro was pleased with NCharge, which provided her with a better understanding of communication styles and techniques to handle a variety of situations confidently in the unit.

Haro wasn’t the only person who noticed a need for better communication and confidence from front-line nursing leaders. When Catalyst Learning surveyed nurse managers at Saint Anthony before the NCharge courses were implemented, less than 20% strongly agreed that the Charge Nurses in their departments displayed confidence when leading their teams. In addition, less than 30% agreed that Charge Nurses were cognizant of the key drivers of a positive patient experience. A few months after the training was held, the same nurse managers were surveyed and reported dramatic improvement with over 65% saying Charge Nurses were more confident and over 70% recognized key drivers in positive patient experience.

Cultivating Team Dynamics

A more efficient, collaborative environment was formed as a result of the NCharge leadership training. The team who completed training worked stronger and smarter together when handling obstacles. “I really wanted to work with others in the hospital in the same position. It’s nice to have others to lean on and run questions by, and share experiences with. Networking with my own colleagues was a great bonus,” stated Haro.

Elizabeth Negrete, Director of Perinatal and Pediatric Services, had staff who completed NCharge training. Staffing in OB, having the right number of staff and the right combination, had been a continuous issue. NCharge class participants looked at staffing and created plans to put the right skills and experience in the best combinations. “Now the staff are the ones doing the schedule, entering it in to the system and balancing. When the census goes down, they adjust appropriately based on the patient grid. This shows how they have been working more autonomously and are able to make important decisions with less guidance,” explained Negrete. “The Charge Nurses are working more in collaboration with the house managers. Before, staff managers were just telling them what the need was, but now the Charge Nurses are more empowered to speak up about needs.”

Haro reported that the rounding process has also gone through changes, giving the NCharge participants an opportunity to observe with fresh eyes what happens within the unit when everyone is not on board with a change. “It takes some buy-in from everyone, and there were days when we were just being run ragged. You could easily see that on days when the new process wasn’t being used, feelings and tensions were high,” conveyed Haro.

By equipping front-line leaders with the skills to embrace change, NCharge prepares staff for reaction from team members and how to move forward as a unit. This can be vitally important and impactful when trying to deal with the constant updates within hospitals. “There is always more trust from staff when changes come from Charge Nurses. There is more peer influence and impact. The staff has more of a buy-in because they know the Charge Nurses truly understand what the impact will be since they are on the frontline with them,” described Negrete.

Quality Advancements

Made evident in the impressive move of their Leapfrog Safety grade from a D in 2014 to an A in October 2016, the hospital seems to have found the key to success in increasing quality standards. Napier credits the NCharge series with being a factor in that improvement after implementation in early 2016.

The combination of increased confidence, more efficient staffing and adaptability to change have helped Saint Anthony become a more progressive, efficient hospital when it comes to patient care and standards. “The nurses are more cohesive as a team and moving towards a group environment where the charge nurses really stand out as leaders. They are really keeping their team members engaged. All of that correlates to the patient experience and how everyone is measured,” stated Napier. “Our people were skilled but now they have more confidence in those skills and their ability to engage the nurses on their team. They now understand how this all comes together to enhance the patient experience.” By giving front-line leaders new techniques to handle their day-to-day situations and changes, an environment of new ideas and proactive enthusiasm has been cultivated.

By investing in the front-line nursing leadership at Saint Anthony, stronger teams were built and the confidence instilled in the newly trained charge nurses was of great value. The return on investment for the Chicago hospital is shown through the recognition of receiving its first A rating from Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade and becoming a top-rated hospital.